In the mid-twentieth century, Henry Dreyfuss, widely considered the father of industrial design, pioneered a user-centered approach to design that focuses on studying people's behaviors and attitudes as a key first step in developing successful products. In the intervening years, user-centered design has expanded to undertake the needs of differently abled users and global populations as well as the design of complex systems and services. Beautiful Users explores the changing relationship between designers and users and considers a range of design methodologies and practices, from user research to hacking, open source, and the maker culture.

Accompanies the fall 2014 exhibition that reopens the Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum in New York City, following a three-year renovation

Includes a critical glossary of terms, from consumer and prosumer to human factors and experience design

Beautiful Users is edited and designed by Ellen Lupton, senior curator of contemporary design at the Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum and the bestselling author of numerous PAPress books, including Thinking with Type, Type on Screen, and Graphic Design Thinking.

Editorial Reviews

Wired magazine:

"Beautiful Users catalogs dozens of modern products made with careful consideration of interaction and interface."

Communication Arts magazine:

"A fascinating survey of objects and interfaces as they have evolved to better serve us humans."